Prime Ribeyes with Blue Balls (no money shot)

[austin87]

We had my girlfriend's parents over for dinner last night - they are moving in a few days and mostly packed up. Got some prime ribeyes, sweet potatoes, and Brussels sprouts







We got to drinking, talking, and eating and I forgot about the camera. Ribeyes were cooked reverse sear for a nice edge to edge pink, sprouts were cooked in bacon grease till good and charred, then drizzled with maple syrup and butter... But, as usual - with no pics, it didn't happen!

[Troy]

that is a fantastic looking meal!!!
I've never successfully cooked good Brussels sprouts. Is butter and bacon grease the secret to good sprouts?

[austin87]

@Troy that and high heat. Get a cast iron or steel pan smoking hot with bacon grease (if I cook bacon first I usually remove the bits and stir them back in at the end) and throw the sprouts in (make sure they are really dry) and roast them, turning occasionally. A 500 degree oven or really hot grill works great. After they are starting to blacken and get soft, remove from heat, add butter and a little real maple syrup, salt and pepper to taste, and stir.

Also make sure you cut them in half so you have a flat surface area to make good contact with the pan.

[austin87]

Here is a redemption post with the leftover ribeye - lots of pics in this one

http://weberkettleclub.com/forums/bbq-food-pics/prime-ribeye-cheesesteak-(redemption)-pic-heavy/

[SixZeroFour]

No redemption required - that's a great looking kettle cooked meal right there!

[WNC]

i bet it was great! I keep chickening out on the reverse sear

[BBcue-Z]

That's a fantastic looking meal!!!

[chuck s]

I love the Brussels sprouts..... thanks for the info .... redemption post awesome too ..... 

[austin87]

@WNC I love the reverse sear - use a good thermometer and when it gets to 110-115 internal pat it dry with paper towels, brush with a little oil, and sear the crap out of it with the lid off. It will finish about 10-15 degrees higher. Meathead has a more detailed breakdown: http://amazingribs.com/recipes/beef/steakhouse_steaks.html

[addicted-to-smoke]

No problem Austin, I always appreciate seeing cook setups even if there's no money shot.

@Troy that and high heat. Get a cast iron or steel pan smoking hot with bacon grease (if I cook bacon first I usually remove the bits and stir them back in at the end) and throw the sprouts in (make sure they are really dry) and roast them, turning occasionally. A 500 degree oven or really hot grill works great. After they are starting to blacken and get soft, remove from heat, add butter and a little real maple syrup, salt and pepper to taste, and stir.

Also make sure you cut them in half so you have a flat surface area to make good contact with the pan.

@austin87 a couple questions here ...

"(make sure they are really dry)"

^ That caught my eye, and I'm wondering if what often happens is, people don't do that first and so they get that funky "I hate brussel sprouts" flavor as a result? I'm speculating, but I don't usually see drying veggies as a prerequisite for success so I thought I'd ask.

re; roasting ...

Was also wondering about using a shaker basket instead, but then you'd have to give up the butter and maple syrup later, unless you cooked them in the basket first and then transferred to skillet with those things. Probably more work than ideal.

[Nate]

Looks yummy.

[austin87]

@addicted-to-smoke I might be eating pesticides or something nasty but I don't even wash the sprouts because I don't want any water on them (maybe one of the few things to buy organic). The key is to have the outside char and develop a good caramelization all over before they are too mushy and if they are wet they steam. In my experience if you cook them long enough with water they do develop the "I hate Brussels sprouts" flavor.

Yeah I would skip the basket, surface area on the skillet is really important. I also don't stir in the butter until the end because the skillet is so hot I think the butter would burn. You can also throw whole, unpeeled cloves of garlic in at the same time as the sprouts and they will roast whole and you can squeeze them out of the skin onto bread, steak, whatever.

My picture is before the sprouts were done but they end up pretty dark in color all over. It can take 20 minutes or more depending on how big the sprouts are. If I can I go with little ones.

[eccj]

i bet it was great! I keep chickening out on the reverse sear

Just make sureyour steak is thick enough, or your temperature isn't to high to overcook the steak while you're smoking it offset!

[chuck s]

Thanks for the update on the sprouts .... @addicted-to-smoke and I were talking about this yesterday on our way up to a brewery tasting ..... however after the tasting I forgot about what we said...

[Johnpv]

Damn those are some mighty fine looking hunks of cow.

Is butter and bacon grease the secret to good sprouts?

Absolutely.